Digital+Story


 * Assignment 3: Digital Story**

Making my digital story was a very rewarding experience for me. It gave me a chance to bond with my Dad and even learn a little bit more about his past experiences in work and life. Having the chance to actually go over to Kangaroo Island to make my digital story was a great personal experience and it really made me appreciate the work that my Dad has done over the many years. In regards to the learning I experienced technologically; I gained further skills in using editing software and really enjoyed using Garage Band and iMovie. I know that I will definitely continue to use these programs in my future work and leisure activities.
 * What did you learn from this process?**

To my surprise I did not find anything frustrating or over challenging in creating my digital story. Probably the hardest thing was choosing only a few of the best photographs that I took. I found it a little hard at the beginning to choose which audio to keep and which audio to get rid of, but in listening to the final product I know that I kept the most important and relevant parts to make my story. If I were to change the way I made this story next time I would think about using more effects in iMovie and maybe adding in a background soundtrack. I would really like to explore the more technical aspects of the iMovie program and that is what I will do in the future when I can find the time!


 * View the other class stories. Identify at least three and say what elements attracted you to them.**

//The Fire Dancer - by Patrick Gett// I particularly liked this digital story as it had real meaning to it. From the very beginning you can tell that Patrick is very passionate about fire dancing and that it is a big part of his life and memories. The photographs were simple and effective and capture the detail of the fire streaming through the air from the patterns created with the stick. I liked that fact that Patrick included video footage a long with still photographs, and you could tell that the video footage was from quite a few years ago because of the quality - and I believe that this was what he was aiming for. I think it's nice for someone to be able to tell a story about their own life and I'm sure that Patrick will cherish this story in the years to come.

//Pale by Comparison - by Cat Harris// This story was very engaging for me and I enjoyed the emotional aspects of it. It has opened my eyes up to the discrimination and disadvantage that some people have to deal with in their lives. I have never had to deal personally with any sort of discrimination or major disadvantage in my lifetime, so it makes me appreciate what this person has been through as an Indigenous Australian. The story makes me happy, because this person has fought through the discrimination in his life and stayed strong. The fact that he is now doing something positive to try and minimise the disadvantage is inspirational to me. The photographs were also very beautiful, there was a wide variety that all related to each other and they told the story well.

//Creativity and Connections - by Evan Sanders// The artist in this digital story is very talented, and her paintings and passionate about art really drew me in. I really enjoyed looking at the photographs because they were of high quality and taken very well. Raphaela's connection with her art is very warming to me and it makes me happy that she is doing something that she loves and something that she is very talented in. Evan has put this piece together nicely; the simple zoom in/out effect on the photographs is effective, the sound is very clear and smooth, and the photographs are very precise, varied and of high quality.

Digital storytelling can be used to enhance student's literacy skills and improve the writing program in your classroom. If student's were to create their own digital stories that teacher would have to guide them through a structured process, from drafting, writing and editing a personal story, making a story board, collating images and to producing the digital story using a computer and it's software. The making of digital stories can be simplified for younger students and made more complex for older students; it really is an adaptable activity.
 * In what way might Digital Storytelling be useful in teaching?**

Digital storytelling have various benefits on student learning, it is an interesting and motivating task for digital natives and appeals to many different learning styles of students. Producing the digital story develops communication and multimedia skills and engages students in their own learning process.